Tonight the Prince George Cougars will continue their B.C. Division tour at the historic Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver. The Cougars are looking to snap a six game losing streak, and are looking for their first victory in Vancouver since March 11, 2011. Standing in their way tonight is a Vancouver Giants team that sits just two points back of the Prince George Cougars in the B.C. Division.

OVERVIEW:

Don Hay’s Vancouver Giants head into tonight’s game with a record of 7-11-1-1. They’re record, goals for and goals against are eerily similar to that of the Prince George Cougars. So far this season the Giants are 2-0 against the Cougars having defeated them twice in Prince George back on October 29th and October 30th. Vancouver is 6-4 in their past 10 games.

WHO’S UP FRONT:

18-year-old forward Jackson Houck recently had a seven game point streak snapped during Wednsday’s loss to Edmonton. Prior to that, Houck had six goals and 11 points in that span, and currently sits fourth in team scoring. Four of his eight goals this season have been scored against the Prince George Cougars.

WHO’S ON D:

With 20 points in 20 games, 19-year-old defenceman Brett Kulak leads all Giants in scoring so far. Earlier this season, Kulak had a goal and two assists in the two games played in Prince George. Kulak has provided Don Hay with steady two-way play for a number of seasons now, and tonight you can expect to see a ton of the Calgary Flames prospect in all situations.

WHO’S IN GOAL:

With a record of 6-9-1, sophomore goaltender Payton Lee is starting to find his form. His goals-against-average and save percentage are still not where they need to be, but Payton Lee has shown that he is more than capable of stealing games, particularly against Prince George. Lee was not very good on October 29th in Prince George, but he did just enough to help his team secure a 6-5 victory. Lee has a lifetime record of 5-1 against Prince George.

X-FACTOR:

The Vancouver Giants have not lost to the Cougars at home since March of 2011. That said, home has not been a friendly place for Vancouver so far this season where they have posted a record of 2-6. The Coliseum is a tough place to play and it will be important for Vancouver to establish themselves physically at home and serve notice that the Cougars are in for a battle if they want to secure two road points.

OVERVIEW:

Mark Holick’s Prince George Cougars will play their second of three games in three nights tonight in Vancouver. Their record of 7-10-1-3 has them ranked third in the B.C. Division five points back of Victoria, and just two points ahead of Vancouver.

WHO’S UP FRONT:

Third year forward Jordan Tkatch has very quietly put together a four game point streak. The product of Prud’Homme, Saskatchewan is playing some of his best hockey as a Cougar, and is finding success because he’s doing the little things right. He’s winning draws, battling hard and has seemed to have found a home alongside Klarc Wilson and Brett Roulston as a sort of ‘energy line’ for Prince George. Can he bump the streak to five games tonight? A similar effort to last night’s in Kelowna and absolutely he can and should.

WHO’S ON D:

Last night the Prince George Cougars were too easy to play against. Despite the fact that they led for a majority of the game, they were outshot 51-28 and were out-worked often in their own zone. Tonight, the Cougars need a solid bounce-back effort from the entire team defensively. The Cougars need to do a better job of protecting the front of their net, and making life tougher on the opposition. Marc McNulty had two points last night for the Cougars, but may not go tonight after he suffered an injury in the second period for the Cougars.

WHO’S IN GOAL:

With 46 saves on 51 shots faced last night in Kelowna, Ty Edmonds did more than enough to earn another start tonight in Vancouver. The rookie goaltender had a strong bounce back game after a few tough starts recently. Edmonds has given the Cougars a great chance to win almost every night he’s played this seaosn, and hopefully that trend can continue tonight if he indeed does get the nod in goal. Brett Zarowny has been solid lately, and could very well get the call. Either way, the goaltending will need to be strong to give the Cougars a shot in Vancouver.

X-FACTOR:

Simply put, the Prince George Cougars MUST be tougher to play against tonight and not neccessarily with physicality alone. The compete level in all three zones needs to be better than the Vancouver Giants tonight. if the Cougars can win battles along the wall, and outskate the opposition, they are going to give themselves every opportunity to win. If they coast and cut corners, than it could very well mean a ninth straight loss in Vancouver.